Balasore (Odisha): India on Tuesday succcessfully test-fired an advanced version of the 290-km range Brahmos supersonic cruise missile off the coast of Odisha, giving the country the capability to hit enemy targets hidden behind mountains or in a cluster of buildings with “pinpoint accuracy”.
The missile travelled its full strike range of 290 kms in about 500 seconds to hit its simulated target in a copybook fashion after being fired from the Integrated Test Range at Chandipur-on-sea, around 15 kms from here, BrahMos chief A Sivathanu Pillai told PTI.
Dwelling on the increased accuracy of the missile, he said, “The advanced guidance system integrating multiple navigation satellites including the Gagan system powered with new software algorithm and developed indigenously by Indian scientists and industries, resulted in pinpoint accuracy of the missile system against hidden land targets in mountain warfare.” BrahMos and DRDO officials involved in the test-firing at the launch block had said earlier the missile could deviate around 10 metres from its target but the new system would reduce it to less than 5 metres which will make it highly effective against targets such as hardened concrete bunkers in mountain warfare.
The missile was test-fired from a mobile launcher at 10.38 AM, Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) said. It is capable of carrying a conventional warhead of 300 kgs. “It was a developmental trial of BrahMos,” Ravi Kumar Gupta, senior defence scientist and Director, Directorate of Public Interface, DRDO, said.
The two-stage missile, the first one being solid and the second one ramjet liquid propellant, has already been inducted into the Army and Navy, and the Air Force version is in final stages of trial, a defence official said. Work on the submarine-launched version of the system is also in progress.
This was the 44th test-firing of the missile, said BrahMos, a joint venture firm of India and Russia. The system is now fully operational with two regiments of the Army. It is expected to form part of a third regiment of the Army — the 17 Mountain Strike Corps being raised for deployment along the China border, which mostly comprises mountainous regions from Ladakh to the Northeastern region.
The officials at the launch site said the capability of the missile can be of major use for the Navy once it starts using BrahMos for land attack roles. Induction of the first version of Brahmos system in the Indian Navy commenced from 2005 with the missile being deployed onboard warship INS Rajput.
The maritime force has now equipped eight warships with the cruise missile but they are meant for anti-ship roles. BrahMos said the Indian companies have played a big role in the development of the system as “about 205 Indian industries have come in a big way by significantly contributing their knowhow and expertise in realising the BrahMos weapon system.
The test on Tuesday also proved the new canister launcher and fuel management system developed by private vendors L&T and Godrej systems. BrahMos said the weapon’s successful launch will give a boost to the ongoing programme of future installations of the system in the Army in the field of mountain warfare. The air-launched version of the missile is expected to be ready for test-firing by the end of this year. (PTI)
